The word 'critical" has three meanings which are dangerous, important, and disapproving. The purpose of this blog is to examine important or over-looked cultural, political, artistic, or historical issues of our time. Also, this blog is intended to be educational.

Thursday, April 13, 2017

Facts about Thailand

Thailand is a Southeast Asian country. It's known for
tropical beaches, opulent royal palaces, ancient ruins and ornate temples
displaying figures of Buddha. In Bangkok, the capital, an ultramodern cityscape
rises next to quiet canalside communities and the iconic temples of Wat Arun,
Wat Pho and the Emerald Buddha Temple (Wat Phra Kaew). Nearby beach resorts
include bustling Pattaya and fashionable Hua Hin.

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The
national flag of Thailand is raised every morning at 8:00 and lowered every
evening at 6:00. It was introduced in 1917 by King Vajiravudh (Rama VI). Its
two horizontal red stripes symbolize the land and its people. The white
horizontal stripes represent the purity of Buddhism, the nation’s main
religion. The wide blue band across the center stands for the monarchy. Before
1917, the flag had a picture of a white elephant against a red background.

The Flag of Thailand

Thailand
is the world’s 51st largest country.

The
size of Thailand is198,115 square miles (513,115 sq km).

Seventy
five percent of the people in Thailand are Thai, 14% are Chinese, and 11% are
“other.”

Thailand’s
national language is called Thai, which many scholars believe is a form of
Chinese that was gradually brought to the area between the 7th and 13th
centuries. Like Lao, Vietnamese, and Chinese, Thai is a very tonal language.
Its alphabet has 32 vowels and 44 consonants.

Thailand’s
name in the Thai language is Prathet Thai, which means “Land of the Free”. It
is the only country in Southeast Asia that was never colonized by a European
nation. The term may also refer to an ethnic group from which many Thai people
descend.

Thailand
has had several names over the centuries. For hundreds of years it was known by
the names of its dominant cities, such as Sukhothai, Ayutthaya, and Thonburi.
Since the 1800s, it has repeatedly switched back and forth between Siam
(Sanskrit meaning dark or brown) and Thailand.

Thailand’s
and the world’s longest reigning monarch is Bhumibol Adulyadej, who became King
Rama IX in June 1946. He was born in the U.S. in 1927 when his father was
studying medicine at Harvard. He owns a patent on a form of cloud seeding and
holds a degree in engineering from Switzerland. He also plays the saxophone and
composed Thailand’s national anthem.

King Rama IX

The
population of Thailand is 67,091,089, which is ranked 20th in the world. The
ranking takes into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS.

Both
the Hollywood movie and Broadway play of The King and I are banned in Thailand. Based on the
Siamese ruler King Mongkut and a teacher named Anna Leonowens, the movie is
seen as insulting to the king. While the movie depicts him as uncultured, he is
believed to be the first Asian ruler to speak, read, and write English
fluently. He also is considered highly intelligent, cultured, and well read.
Further, he is known as the father of Thai scientists.

The
longest place name in the world is the full name of Bangkok, the capital city
of Thailand: Krungthepmahanakhon Amonrattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya
Mahadilokphop Noppharatratchathaniburirom Udomratchaniwetmahasathan Amonphimanawatansathit
Sakkathattiyawitsanukamprasit. It means “City of Angels, Great City of
Immortals, Magnificent City of the Nine Gems, Seat of the King, City of Royal
Palaces, Home of Gods Incarnate, Erected by Visvakarman at Indra’s Behest.”

One
in 10 Thais live in Bangkok, the nation’s largest city.

Bangkok

Bangkok
is one of Asia’s top tourist destinations. In 2005, more than 11 million
foreign tourists visited in the city.

Bangkok

Bangkok
was once called the “Venice of the East” because its original buildings stood
on stilts above the Chao Phraya River. However, as Bangkok grew larger, most
canals were filled and paved.

Bangkok

A
nuclear family in Thailand is rare because most people live in large extended
families.

Thailand
set the world record of the longest line of washed plates in May, 2010, when
10,488 washed plates were lined up. However, that record was crushed on April
6, 2011, in India when 15,295 washed plates were lined up, equaling more than
2.36 miles.

Thailand
shares a border with four countries: Myanmar (formerly Burma) to the north and
west, Laos to the north and east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Malaysia to
the south.

Thailand
is home to the world’s largest gold Buddha, the largest crocodile farm, the
largest restaurant, the longest single-span suspension bridge, and the world’s
tallest hotel.

the world’s largest gold Buddha

In
the past, all Thai young men including the kings became Buddhist monks for at
least a short period of time before their 20th birthday. Today, fewer young men
observe the practice.

Buddhism
is Thailand’s largest religion with approximately 94.6% of the population
practicing the religion. Muslims make up 4.6%, Christians 0.7%, and “other”
0.1%.

Thai Buddhist Temples

Thailand
houses the world’s largest fish, the 12-meter Rhincodon typus, otherwise known
as the whale shark.

Medicine
man Hoo Sateow from Thailand has the world’s documented longest hair at 16’
11" long. He says his hair “keeps him nice and warm.”

In
1996, two rare “diamond-eyed cats,” Phet and Ploy, were married in a lavish
$16,241 Thai wedding, the most expensive pet wedding in the world.

In
1999, 30 vets worked to heal a 38-year-old cow elephants’ foot, which had been
destroyed when she stepped on a landmine in Thailand. It set the record for the
largest number of vets in one procedure

In
1999, a group of 282 skydivers set the record for the largest number of
skydivers in a free-fall formation above Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand. They held
the link for 7.11 seconds.

The
world’s largest Christmas log cake was made in Bangkok, Thailand, on December
25, 1997. The cake weighed 5,071 lbs. and reached 27’ 6". It was later cut
into 19, 212 portions.

Thailand
set the record for the longest catwalk on April 9, 2010. The catwalk was 1,584
meters long and was part of the Pattaya International Fashion Week.

Thailand
is home to the world’s hairiest child, Supatra “Nat” Sasuphan.

The
highest elevation in Thailand is Doi Inthanon at 8,514 feet (2,595 m). It is
also a popular tourist destination. In fact, an estimated 12,000 people visit
the summit each New Year’s Day. The lowest elevation is sea level along the
coast.

A
century ago, northern Thailand was covered with dense hardwood forests. Today
only about ¼ of the country remains wooded. Thailand has the second-highest
rate of forest loss in Southeast Asia. Only Singapore has lost more. Today,
logging is banned in Thailand.

Siamese
cats are native to Thailand. In Thai they are called wichen-maat, meaning “moon
diamond.” A 14th-century book of Thai poems describes 23 types of Siamese cats;
today only six breeds are left. Giving a pair of Si Sawat cats (a type of
Siamese cats) to a bride is supposed to bring good luck to the marriage.

A Siamese Cat

Traffic
police in Bangkok wear facemasks because of dangerous levels of air pollution.
Additionally, police stations are equipped with oxygen tanks in case exhaust
fumes overwhelm the officers. More than 20% of Bangkok’s police have some form
of lung disease. One Thai bank estimated that Bangkok’s pollution woes cost the
nation $2.3 billion annually in lost production, wasted energy, and health
costs.

Prostitution
is technically illegal in Thailand, but the law is very rarely enforced.
Estimates of the number of sex workers vary from 30,000 to more than 1 million.

One-tenth
of all animal species on Earth live in Thailand.

Thailand
is home to what may be the world’s longest snake, the reticulated python. The
largest one ever found stretched over 33 feet (10 m) from end to end.

reticulated python

The
largest living lizard is native to Thailand. The monitor lizard can grow as
long as 7 feet.

monitor lizard

Thailand
is home to the world’s longest poisonous snake, the king cobra. The cobra can
reach more than 18 feet long, and one bite from it can kill an elephant.

king cobra

The
world’s smallest mammal, the Craseonycteris thonglongyai (the bumblebee bat), is
found in Thailand.

bumblebee bat

Thailand
houses the world’s largest fish, the 12-meter Rhincodon typus, otherwise known
as the whale shark.

Approximately
10% of the world’s bird species live in Thailand, a greater proportion than in
all of Europe or North America.

Swiftlet
nests are made from strands of saliva from the male swiftlet bird. Swiftlet
nests collected from Thai caves can fetch more than $900 per pound. It is one
of the world’s most coveted and expensive food items.

A
century ago, more than 100,000 elephants lived in Thailand, with about 20,000
of them untamed. Now, there are about 5,000, with less than half of them wild.

The
Mekong River, which forms part of Thailand’s eastern border, supports more than
1,300 species of fish. It holds some of the world’s largest freshwater fish,
including a giant catfish which can reach nearly 10 feet long and weigh as much
as 660 lbs.

One
of Thailand’s most curious creatures is the mudskipper, which is a fish that is
capable of walking on land and climbing trees. It uses its fins to “walk” and
can absorb oxygen through its skin and lining in its mouth. It spends most of
its time out of the water, eating the algae in tidal pools.

a mudskipper

The
2004 tsunami hurtled a wall of water 30 feet high over Thailand’s coast,
killing over 8,000 people. An estimated 1,500 Thai children lost their parents
and more than 150,000 Thais working in the fishing or tourist industries lost
their livelihoods.

Northern
Thailand was a major producer of opium in the 1960s and 1970s, which was a
major source of income for the hill tribes. The northern tip of Thailand, the
western tip of Laos, and the eastern corner of Myanmar make up what is called
the “Golden Triangle” and is notorious for the production and trafficking of
opium and heroin.

More
than 1,500 species of orchids grow wild in Thai forests. Thailand is the
world’s number one orchid exporter.

Over
300,000 Thai have settled in North America with the largest communities along
the West Coast in cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Vancouver.
Today, over 10,000 Americans live in Thailand.

World-famous
golfer Tiger Woods is the son of an American father and a Thai mother.

Tiger Woods

Just
as the bald eagle is a symbol of the U.S., the Garuda (a creature from the
Hindu religion) is a national and royal symbol of Thailand.

Thailand
is the world’s largest producer of tin.

The
Ramakien is the national epic narrative of Thailand and has influenced everyday
Thai life for hundreds of years. The story is actually the Thai version of
Ramayana, a poem first told in India 3,000 year ago.

The
brothers who gave the world the term “Siamese twins” were born in 1811 in a
village near Bangkok. The twins Eng and Chang were joined at the chest and left
Thailand for the U.S when they were 17 years old. Each brother married, and
between them they had 22 children. In 1873, Eng caught pneumonia and died.
Chang died a few hours later.

U.S, President Andrew Jackson initiated
the first official contact with Thailand in the 19th century.

President Andrew Jackson

The
first case of HIV/Aids was reported in Thailand in 1984. Thailand currently has
the highest prevalence of HIV in Asia.

Sex
tourism increased significantly during the 1960s and 1970s because during the
Vietnam War American troops were flown to R&R (GIs called it I&I:
Intoxication and Intercourse) sites not formally attached to military bases.
The Thai government passed the Entertainment Places Act in 1966, which codified
the practice of police tolerance of military prostitution.

Thailand
has one of the worst child sex trafficking records in the world.

Thailand
has a reputation for sexual tolerance and is considered very safe for LGBT
travelers. Transsexuals, also known as krathoeys or ladyboys,
are highly visible in mainstream society.

In
Thailand, the head is the most important part of the body. Consequently, no one
must ever touch another person, even a child, on the head. Thais always try to
keep their heads lower than the head of any person who is older or more
important, to show respect.

Each
year, around six million foreign tourists visit Thailand. Thailand has also
attracted many expatriates from developed countries.

Traditionally
in Thailand, feet are considered lowly because they symbolize an attachment to
the ground, which is a cause for human suffering. As such, a person must never
sit with their feet pointing to a statue in a temple or at some other person.
Feet must always be tucked underneath the body.

Movies
that have been filmed in Thailand include The Big Boss(1941), Around the World inEighty
Days (1956), The
Ugly American(1963), The Deer Hunter (1978), The KillingFields(1984), Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985), Good Morning Vietnam (1987), Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), The Beach(2000), Alexander(2004), Bridget Jones: Edge of Reason (2004), Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the
Sith(2005), Stealth(2005),
and The Hangover Part II(2011).